We at Living Loud are really excited to announce the next project we are working on. The wheels are in motion but we need a lot of help from volunteers to make this truly successful.
Our goal at Living Loud is to help those with developmental disabilities find opportunities for meaningful, joyful, and purposeful work and leisure. One of Jordan's favorite jobs at Aspiro involved sorting and packaging. A few weeks ago I was looking at a picture of Jordan at Aspiro (before he was paralyzed), and he was smiling and helping someone less fortunate than himself. It is one of my favorite pictures of him. And it gave me the following idea which I immediately acted on :) There are many people in need in Northeast Wisconsin. There are people in Day Service programs (and sheltered workshops and group homes and private homes) who have developmental disabilities and can help these people in need! I have already met with the director at Aspiro and we have plans to have clients assemble "helping hands" kits, if you will. To start, Living Loud will supply Aspiro with contents for the bags that will go to both hospitals and shelters. So as not to become overwhelmed, our first "production line" will be to supply bags to the Emergency Department and Pediatric unit at St. Vincent Hospital. As Alan and I know all too well, occasionally a child will need to be admitted to the hospital unexpectedly. The parents probably have not had time to pack a bag for them or the child. The Child Life Department has given us a list of essentials for parents stuck at the hospital unexpectedly as well as for different ages of children. Living Loud will supply these things to Aspiro who will then have clients who are willing and able package them into bags for different age groups. Parents, Babies, Toddlers, Young Children, Tweens and Teens. Aspiro clients will then deliver the bags to the hospital to be given to whoever needs them. This is such a great first project of this kind for us as Jordan was both a "worker". as he called himself at Aspiro, and also a recipient of gifts from kind people and organizations while receiving cancer treatment. If we get enough help from all of you for this to take off, we'd like to make helping hands bags for other area hospitals and also homeless and domestic abuse shelters in the area while involving adolescents and young adults from other agencies as well. This could get BIG! Later in the week I am going to post a list of items that we need for the bags, mostly little things like toothbrushes and socks, but some bigger things. Blankets are also a big need across many of the recipients. We are welcoming ideas on who/how/where for blankets, the bags (homemade, store bought, etc.) and the items inside. If you have ideas for where we can get these items donated from, please let me know! With Jordan Always in my Heart, Danae
0 Comments
|